Automation of the work and leisure environment is a concept that has been long pursued. Despite the continued pursuit, widespread automation, particularly in the home, has not gone much beyond the use of timers, programmable thermostats, and universal remote controls for audio and video equipment.
In the home, higher levels of automation have been left to the domain of the hobbyist and high net worth individuals. A major reason being that home automation systems tend to be difficult to implement and maintain and/or extremely expensive relative to the utility and benefits of the system. Also, the solutions tend to be one size fits all, where the benefits associated with the systems are realized with large system deployments, irrespective of whether a person wants to automate an individual socket, a room, or an entire facility.
X10 has been the most widely implemented protocol in the home automation industry. X10 is a low-speed, unidirectional PowerLine Communication/Carrier (PLC) solution that uses a home electrical power wiring to communicate with various devices that control the various functions in the home, such as light switches, wall receptacles, thermostats, etc. Common criticisms of X10 are directed toward its reliability and robustness, as well as the level of user-friendliness. As such, these systems have been left to hobbyist and those people willing to pay professional contractors to install and/or maintain the systems. Other PLC protocols have been developed to address the criticisms of X10, which have enhanced performance and user experience, but have not substantially broadened the market for these products.
The high-end of the residential market has typically been addressed by comprehensive and expensive stand-alone systems, which often require the use of professional services firms to install and possibly maintain the system. These systems can be integrated with other systems, such as security and intercom systems, to defray the cost of system ownership. In addition to the price of the comprehensive system, the cost and inconvenience associated with providing an infrastructure to support these systems in existing structures has further constrained the market.
The emergence of wireless communication technology and digital media has reinvigorated the automation market, particularly the home market. New wireless protocols and standards are being developed and adopted to support wireless automation systems. The wireless systems are not constrained by power lines and do not require expensive wiring to build out a separate communication network or retrofit an existing structure.
Currently, there are two emerging protocols being introduced in the 1st generation of standard wireless automation products, namely Zigbee and Z-Wave. Both protocols attempt to provide a wireless networking standard that supports low data rates, low power consumption, security and reliability. Zigbee is open standard based on IEEE 802.15.4, while Z-Wave is a proprietary standard developed by Zensys, Inc., the current sole source for the chips that implement the protocol.
Many of the high-end automation system vendors have developed media center systems for the distribution and control of audio and video signals throughout the structure, which also include some home automation functionality. The media center provides control over various automation devices deployed in the structure and typically be accessed locally by a computer or remotely via the Internet. A universal remote control is typically provided, which communicates with the media center, which, in turn, communicates with the audio, video, and automation devices.
Other products employ a gateway controller that is controlled from a remote network operations center (“NOC”) via a network connection into the structure. The gateway controller controls devices in the structure based on information provided by the NOC and provide status information to the NOC. A remote control is provided to allow for control of the individual automation devices without having to reprogram the device through the NOC.
Outside the home in non-residential settings, whether it is for or non-profit, academic, governmental, social, etc., owners and tenants face challenges similar to those in the residential market. Non-residential energy consumers can employ highly sophisticated systems for controlling their heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (“HVAC”), as well as for access control and information technology. Otherwise, these consumers are also generally limited to the use of programmable thermostats and motion controlled lighting.
As such, most energy consumers have little visibility into their energy consumption patterns. The lack of visibility makes it difficult to modify or tailor consumption patterns to reduce the energy consumed or the cost of the energy being consumed. Furthermore, participation in utility based conservation programs, such as demand-response programs, is typically limited to those residential and non-residential facilities that can operate with periodic interruptions of their air conditioning systems.
In summary, existing systems in many instances do not provide a sufficiently compelling value proposition in terms of cost, ease of use, scalability, and overall utility to expand the market for these products. Improved automation solutions are required that overcome the various limitations associated with prior art solutions to enable high quality, cost effective, and scalable automation solutions for homes and businesses that can applied by the end users to their particular automation needs.